Recent reviews by flame lily

Very unique rhythm game that trains your ability to internalise complex rhythms in various meters - 1/4, 1/3, 5/6, swing, and so on. Different visual patterns correspond to different rhythms which you learn by muscle memory.

The levels are pretty with lots of colourful visual effects and transformations, and the music blends acoustic and electronic sounds in a way that doesn't seem to get boring, which is great for a game where you keep hitting retry.

Can get confusing for the brain, but very fun.

Very polished vertical scrolling rhythm game (VSRG) with an impressively customisable interface and hundreds of songs from various artists - mostly electronic, pop, K-pop, J-pop, etc. The Cytus and Muse Dash DLCs have some of my favourite composers so I was happy to find them.

Has some unique mechanics like "side tracks" (two extra buttons to the left and right which you press with your pinkies) and rewinding, which comes with a score penalty. Skill ceiling is somewhat lower than similar games like osu!mania since the charts aren't community made.

I really like it! In the realm of rhythm games this one is quality.

The soundtrack is phenomenal. After playing for over 40 hours. I can tell you that much. The scifi-esqe synths and drums really set the otherworldly feel in stone, and that makes it oddly nostalgic in a way.

You'll find a lot of people complaining about RNG here, but the truth is that ~95% of runs are winnable, according to top players - and this statistic can go up to 98% on the strongest ships, even on hard mode. For this reason, don't expect an overwhelmingly difficult task achieving victory in this game. It can be frustrating at times, but as long as you learn from your mistakes, it's completely doable. And really fun! Don't expect anything else from a roguelike.

The vast array of ships you can play (counting 28) make the game super replayable as they all start with different weapon loadouts, systems, and room layouts, which affect decisions in every run. If you introduce mods... well, the possibilities are endless - there is no shortage of custom ships.

FTL has beautiful visuals of the cosmos, though the vast majority of the interface is simplistic, so don't expect hyperrealism.

Also a great time killer. Runs can take anywhere from 1 - 3 hours in my experience.

I bought this game on a whim 3 months ago, and barely has a day gone by where I haven't booted it up. The game is like a throwback to classic retro dungeon crawlers like Legend of Zelda spiced up with rhythm.

I'm a musician, so I have a habit of clicking and tapping on objects throughout the day, and this game is like doing just that - while fighting hordes of enemies to the beat of crazy dance music. It satisfies every inch of my soul.

The pixel art is bright and colourful and the mechanics are extensive - there's over a dozen different characters with unique quirks and challenges, like moving at double tempo or dying in a single hit. More on that, the rhythm aspect combined with the fast-paced combat makes this game's more ambitious challenges not for everyone. If you struggle to tap a steady beat you'll struggle to get some achievements, but when playing for fun, it's accessible to anyone. I also appreciate the accessibility options for epilepsy and such.

Difficulty aside, the DLCs are fantastic because they add myriads of new content without losing the feel of the game or creating an imbalance - not to mention the modding capabilities that come with Synchrony.

Really though, it's a 10/10. One of my favourites.

Perfect game for people with logical minds that want to apply their problem-solving skills to the test in a spooky scenario. If your memory isn't good now, it will be after you complete this game.

the difficulty made me cry at one point but otherwise good game 🙂

Hollow Knight is a different experience. It's the kind of game you wish you could erase your memory of to play for the first time again. And again.

The style of graphic design here is unique. It's neither realistic or too simple, and I think that's the perfect choice for a 2D metroidvania. A smaller design, for a smaller world with smaller creatures. As a player, I never find myself losing my character on-screen, and enemies are easy enough to track. Not to mention the cosy atmosphere!

Combined with the visuals, Christopher Larkin's music is so effective. It makes me feel like I'm truly there, among the brambles, or the deep caverns, or the glistening beehives. His use of leitmotifs plays with my emotions even when listening to the OST outside of the game.

When it comes to gameplay mechanics, I'd describe them as fluid and satisfying. There are practically limitless options for styles of combat, and you can modify them further with collectible upgrades and movement abilities. With this, exploring Hollow Knight's vast world simply never gets boring. Ooh, now that I've collected this ability, I can go back to that place I couldn't reach before! Just make sure to disable V-sync.

Despite the deceptively simple environment, it can be said that this game's story is unintuitive for many players. Lore can be inferred from in-game tablets, cutscenes, and journal entries, but other than this, the game mostly leaves it up to your own interpretation.

Hollow Knight is one of the most memorable releases of 2017. A 10 in total — everyone should pick up this game!

It uses the Godot engine, and yet it's so well-made. One of my favourite horror experiences.

I love the quirky little details, like how some GUI elements are synced with the music. There's flavour text for so many random, arbitrary actions, it makes me wonder, why on Earth did the developers even expect a player to touch this thing? That really shows how much thought they put into this game.

As a musician, I'd describe the soundtrack as quite varied. There's the Yume Nikki-esque ambience of endless corridors, and percussion-rich clubroom themes, and every kind of demonic sound effect that always reminded me what was going to happen next (probably) wasn't good. I praise this game for pulling this off so well.

Good game. Give it it a try!

Quaver is not an alternative to osu!mania. osu!mania is an alternative to Quaver.

The perfect simulation of being sent to Brazil and the shadow realm simultaneously.

Jokes aside, I really enjoyed this game! It's only a few hours long, but as of the time I'm editing this review I have 30, and I'm sure that's only going to go up. This is my comfort game.

Although it falls into the horror category, it lacks a lot of common horror elements, such as jumpscares and and a strong plot. Even so, it's a brilliant example of suspense-driven pace, taking advantage of the fear of the unknown, and tense surrealism. It even tapped into my emotions too, which I didn't expect at all!

The various abilities (or "effects") are fascinating. I could diminish infernal blazes, freeze creatures in time, banish clouds of darkness, and go tiny. But when all 25 are collected, there's nowhere left to explore. And that's a problem.

In that way, I think Yume Nikki tricks the player in many ways. To think the world is small at first. To think there's no goal in sight. To think there's no meaning behind these abstract, surreal encounters. Then it snatches that away, and one by one, those realisations made me fall in love with this silly little game. I can tell it doesn't prioritise making me scared. It prioritises making me uncomfortable and it does that very, very well, especially through visuals and audio. Whether it's the recurring technicolour Aztec-like drawings, or blank, monochrome faces, I felt like it was awakening creatures that live in the darkest corners of my mind. The noises make a lot and yet little sense, and short, repetitive loops of distorted harmony constantly remind me that time is passing.

As a very spiritual person that considers dreams an important part of my life, and used to keep a dream journal, Madotsuki enchants me. Exploring the dream world, I came to notice that none of these details are arbitrary or meaningless at all. They're all there to hint at something, whether it's a complex, alien blend of some element in Madotsuki's life, or a thought, a struggle of something the developer wants to express in a language they're fluent in. That's what really pulled me in, and what made me so interested in this character, despite the game having NO DIALOGUE. If that isn't impressive, I don't know what is!

I'm absolutely not surprised that this was an inspiration to Doki Doki Literature Club!.

A deep experience that makes you think. A lot.